


All of the Stars

by BitterRenegade



Series: Co-Pilot [3]
Category: Mass Effect Trilogy
Genre: Anxiety, Best Friends, Canon-Typical Violence, Earthborn (Mass Effect), F/F, F/M, Family Feels, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Gen, Indoctrination Theory, M/M, Mass Effect 3, Mental Health Issues, Multi, Mutual Pining, Original Character(s), Other, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, POV First Person, POV Original Character, Self Confidence Issues, Self-Discovery, Self-Indulgent, Slow Burn, Slow To Update, Sole Survivor (Mass Effect), Spoilers, Tags May Change, The Reaper War
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-10
Updated: 2020-10-11
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:47:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,395
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26394376
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BitterRenegade/pseuds/BitterRenegade
Summary: The final part of the Co-Pilot series.Read the Tags, Fam.
Relationships: Female Shepard/Garrus Vakarian, Jeff "Joker" Moreau/Original Female Character(s), Original Female Character(s)/Original Asari Character(s)
Series: Co-Pilot [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/273783
Comments: 5
Kudos: 6





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

  * For [RiriYuki](https://archiveofourown.org/users/RiriYuki/gifts).



One month. That’s the time Anderson had agreed to give us before Jeff needed to return to Earth to help with the Normandy’s retrofits. A month that we had honestly not expected to even have, considering how we were previously going on a mission with a slim chance of survival, yet here we were.

Against all odds, we’d survived.

Sabrina was placed under arrest and was awaiting her trial. Sadly, none of us were permitted to see her, even if we had ex-councillor David Anderson backing us up. So… we were going to Tiptree. Enjoy some time away from the chaos surrounding Sabrina while we still could. Maybe figure out exactly what was going on between Jeff and me.

The shuttle was devoid of other passengers. Not a lot of people visited far off colony’s like the one we were going to. Still, I was excited. Rural colonies always seemed so _cool_ in the vids.

My omni-tool sounded a notification, causing me to check it. A message from Karin, letting me know that she was returning to the Citadel to work at Huerta Memorial Hospital. I sent her a message in response, asking her to say hello to Thane and his son for me if she saw them.

“You’re smiling.”

I glanced over at Jeff, who had swapped his SR2 hat with a plain, black denim cap that went better with his civilian clothes. Considering how rare it was for me to see him hatless, I knew that he had the _worst_ hat hair in the galaxy. “No points for stating the obvious, Moreau,” I responded, now grinning, holding my omni-tool closer to him and allowing him to see the message thread. “Karin’s going to work at the hospital Thane’s getting treatment at.”

“Makes sense,” Jeff shrugged his shoulders. “Chakwas isn’t the kind of person that can just sit around and relax.”

“She also wanted me to remind you to take your medication,” I teased the pilot, who let out a groan and leaned back in his seat, covering his face with his arm. “Tsk tsk, Karin’s going to be so disappointed with you.”

“I’ll take them, I’ll take them.”

“You’d better. We’re _trying_ to help you get rid of your limp—you’re just making things harder for yourself!”

“I know,” Jeff sighed, removing his arm and peeking at me with a small smile. “I hate to admit it, but my family is going to love you.”

My brow furrowed. “Would you have invited me if you thought they wouldn’t like me?”

“You would’ve won them over easily,” he assured, hesitating for a moment before awkwardly taking my hand and holding it. I felt my face begin to heat up, and awkwardly averted my gaze. “Unlike me, you’re good with people.”

The compliment combined with the awkward hand holding and my emotions being overwhelming caused me to shut down. “Thanks, I know.” God, what was wrong with me? Was I _actually_ good with people?!

A chuckle.

It was quiet between us, but I found it comforting. Slowly I began to relax, hand still in Jeff’s, and as much as I felt like I was reacting like an inexperienced idiot with the affectionate shift in our dynamic, it made me happy. Sure, I had friends. I had family. There were so many people that I had gotten to meet and know and care for thanks to Sabrina. But my friendship with Jeff, my feelings for him… that was all me. It wasn’t something that stemmed from my connection to the legendary Sabrina Shepard. My military career was spent trying to catch up with her in my own way. Now, I was starting to shine on my own. Finding things that I enjoyed outside of just making myself useful for others.

I wasn’t going to let myself be a tool anymore. Not for the Reds, not for the Alliance or for Cerberus. And for as long as I’d known Jeff, he’d never made me feel like one.

“ _Arriving at Destination_ ” The VI’s voice rang out. Jeff quickly removed his hand from mine and went to grab his luggage, and I slung my backpack with my belongings over my shoulder. My armor had been left with the Normandy, though I did keep my weapons. Clothing wise, I had about a week’s worth. If I needed more, I was sure that I would be able to get something at the colony regardless of how small it was.

The two of us exited the shuttle, the colony’s port fairly small. The landing area was large enough to safely land one or two cargo ships, but it was clear that most travel in and out of atmosphere was done with shuttles. Like a lot of colonies that I had been to, the port was clean. Organized. A few workers organizing and carrying produce within line of sight. There was a small waiting area, and though the port was fairly covered, I could see that this was truly a rural area. Lots of trees. The roads outside were paved, but I had a hunch that the further out we got we were more likely to find gravel or dirt paths.

Jeff walked ahead of me, nodding at a few of the port employees and shaking the hand of one of them. They appeared to be some form of security, pistols holstered at their sides and light armor.

“Ah, Jeff!” an older woman let out a hearty laugh and gave Jeff a firm handshake. “Good to see you! Always nice when family comes out to visit.”

“Good to see you too,” my friend (?) replied, shaking the woman’s hand in kind before turning to me and gesturing towards the woman with a nod of his head. “CP, this is Francis. She’s basically Tiptree’s resident Cool Aunt.”

Francis scoffed, shooting Jeff a glare. “ _Basically_?”

“My mistake, she _is_ the Cool Aunt.”

The other security guard, a younger guy that looked like he was barely out of high school, saluted stiffly at the two of us, causing the older woman to sigh and pat him on the back. “Introduce yourself already, Michaels.”

Michaels blanched a bit, awkwardly nodding his head and averting his gaze. My attention on him, I could tell that he didn’t really seem very eager to introduce himself to new people “I’m Newt, but most people just call me by my surname.”

“Nice to meet you, Michaels and Francis!” I greeted with a grin and a wave. “I’m Kim!”

“Okay,” Newt replied, monotonous. The more emotive woman gave him a small glare, sighed, then directed an apologetic smile to Jeff and me.

“Right back at you, Kim,” Francis spoke to me kindly, stepping forward and clasping one hand on my shoulder with the other on Jeff’s, looking back and forth between the two of us “You two stay outta trouble, y’hear? Don’t want to hear about Hilary getting hurt because she tried to copy one of your crazy hoverbike maneuvers,” she gave Jeff a pointed look and released the two of us. I raised an eyebrow, wanting to know more.

“Jeff!”

For me, the voice that called out my friend’s name was unfamiliar, and I saw Jeff’s expression brighten considerably. The pilot turned towards the sound, taking my hand with his free one and muttering a quick farewell to the two security personnel.

“That’s my dad,” Joker explained quickly, limping forwards.

Ahead of us, I could see an older man with salt and pepper hair, stubble, and smile lines. He was tall, a bit taller than Jeff, and as we drew closer, I could see the resemblance. Similar facial structure, the same green eyes. Unlike Jeff, though, he looked like someone whose fitness came from doing physical labour rather than cybernetic upgrades and experimental treatments.

“Hey Dad,” Jeff greeted, clapping his hand onto his father’s shoulder in greeting.

“Almost didn’t believe you when you told me that you were bringing someone with you,” the older gentleman teased his son, eyes crinkling kindly with his smile. He turned his gaze on me, holding out a hand. “Pleasure to meet you.”

I reached out and took his calloused hand into my own and shook it cheerfully. “Thanks for having me, Mr. Moreau! I’m Kim.”

“Feel free to call me Cole or Colton,” he offered, returning his attention to his son. “Jeff, you look well. No more crutches, hm?”

“No more crutches.”

Colton clicked his tongue, nodded, and gestured towards the parking area. “Hilary’s waiting by the skycar. Best not to keep her waiting,” he advised, leading the way.

As we walked, Jeff leaned towards me as though he was about to tell me a secret, then loudly whispered: “Hilary has no patience.”

“She’s a teenager,” Jeff’s father cut in easily. “I don’t think any teenager has patience.”

“I know a lot of adults that don’t have it either,” I added helpfully.

Cole glanced back at us. “Is one of those adults my son?”

“Don’t answer him, CP. He’ll use it against me.”

The girl I assumed was Jeff’s sister quickly spotted us from the relatively dirty skycar she was leaning against, darting over quickly with bright eyes and a giant toothy grin that I recalled from a photo that had been shown to me years prior. Now, however, she had clearly grown a lot in the three years since Jeff had shown me pictures of his family. She was lanky, skin sun-kissed from time that she probably spent outdoors. In person, her face looked even more freckled than through pictures, and her brown hair had lighter brown streaks in it that were probably from exposure to the colony’s sun. Back on Earth, my hair would do a similar thing in the summertime, but it tended to have a bit of a reddish hue to it.

“Jeff! You actually brought someone with you!” the teenager gasped dramatically, circling around us and inspecting me.

“Why is _that_ the most surprising thing to you people?” Jeff grumbled, more to himself than to his family. It was kind of funny, honestly.

“Because you’re like, the least social person I know,” the girl reasoned, pausing in front of me to scrutinize my face. Her close proximity leading me to note that her eyes were more of a blueish-green rather than the emerald that her father and brother sported.

With a chuckle, Cole took Jeff’s luggage from him and moved to deposit it in the trunk while I was inspected by the youngest member of the Moreau family. “Don’t stare at our guest, Kiddo. And introduce yourself already, you’re being rude.”

The girl’s freckled face instantly reddened, and she gave an embarrassed wave to me, becoming shy at the realization of what she’d been doing. “Hi, I’m Hilary. Sorry about that…”

“Don’t worry about it, it’s fun seeing you interact with Joker here,” I assured, shooting Jeff a grin and holding out a hand towards Hilary. “I’m Kim, I’m looking forward to staying with you all!”

Hilary looked at my hand for a few moments before happily taking it, eyes shining with excitement. “Yeah! Jeff told me that you’re his co-pilot, and that you two graduated flight school together, and I want to be a pilot like you two,” she began to ramble on, her words beginning to take on an almost Mordin-like speed. “What was flight school like? And what’s my brother like on the Normandy? And what’s Commander Shepard like in person!? Oh, and—”

“Hilary,” their father placed a hand on her head, the action instantly quieting Hilary. “Slow down a bit. I’m sure that your brother and his friend are tired from the trip, so how’s about we head on back home, let them get settled, and you can interrogate them with all your questions over dinner.”

Jeff let out a sigh, opening the skycar door. “Come on, CP. Let’s take the backseat and let the locals handle the drive.”

Seeing the Moreau family dynamic in action made me happy. Though they hadn't seen each other in awhile, it was like the three of them knew exactly how to act with one another. 

Tiptree was going to be fun.


	2. Chapter 2

The first night in a new place, especially one that I wasn’t used to, was hard. Tiptree was new. The Moreau farmhouse was new. It wasn’t like sleeping on a spaceship, or in the city. The air was warmer, with a different kind of quiet. The kind of quiet that had a semblance of safety, which was exactly the kind of quiet that I handled the worst. 

Military vessels were clearly safer than a colony in the middle of nowhere. Obviously.

There was a knock on the door. “Come in!” I’d called out, my backpack placed down next to the bed I would call my own for the next few weeks. I expected Jeff, but instead I saw the freckled face of the younger Moreau sibling as she poked her head into the room.

“Hi!” she greeted. “Dad said to give you and Jeff time to settle in. Are you settled?”

“I… yes?” I raised an eyebrow at the teenager, who began to smile mischievously as she entered the room and approached with a bounce in her step.

“Awesome, great! So tell me everything that Jeffie wouldn’t want you to spill.”

The amount of confidence in her tone was more than enough to impress me. “Whoa whoa whoa, and what makes you think I’d just tell you all of Moreau’s—“

“Come on, Kim,” Hilary’s smile grew into a devilish grin. “Dad told me a  _ ton _ of Jeffie’s embarrassing childhood stories.”

“...I’m listening.”

Pleased to have my attention, Hilary clapped her hands together excitedly. “Think of it as a  _ bonding _ experience.” I glanced over at the still open door, and kept my expression even when I saw Jeff approach, leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed. “I want to know what my brother’s like as a pilot and about what it was like on the Normandy, and  _ I  _ can tell  _ you _ what my brother was like before he turned into a sarcastic butthead.” 

“Riiiiight,” Jeff drawled, causing Hilary to jump and spin around to face her brother. His expression was amused, but there was a glint in his eyes that told us that he wasn’t pleased by the comment. “Okay, Freckles. Go to bed.”

“It’s  _ Gunny _ ,” the teenager insisted before scowling and standing her ground. “Besides—“

“Bed. Now.” he cut her off cooly, placing a hand on top of the teenager’s head and affectionately ruffling her hair with a smirk. “Since now I know your master plan, I’ve got to talk to my co-pilot and discuss countermeasures.”

“No fair, bro,” the freckled girl pouted, but sulked out of the room thinking she’d lost. “Goodnight, Kim!”

“Aw,  _ Freckles _ ! What about me?” Jeff mocked, putting extra focus on the nickname he knew frustrated his younger sibling to no end. She flipped him the bird, causing Jeff to snicker and close the door before going to talk to me. “So, what do you think?” He gestured vaguely to the space around us.

“Your family seems cool,” I responded with a grin. “And it’s really cute to see you interact with your little sister. I didn’t think the two of you would get along so well, especially considering the age gap.”

Jeff moved to sit on the bed next to me, the mattress dipping slightly under his added weight. “You caught us on a good day. Most of the time, Dad needs to keep us from killing each other.”

“I think we both know she’d win that fight,” I teased.

“Don’t I know it!” Jeff feigned disappointment, then fixed me with a scrutinizing glare. “...Were you going to  _ actually _ answer Hilary’s questions?”

I let out a bark of laughter, unable to hide my amusement. “Oh, Jeff. Of  _ course _ I was going to tell her anything she wanted. She was going to give me material to tease you with for an  _ eternity _ .”

The pilot rolled his eyes. “You know, I’m not even surprised.”

A notification on my omni-tool alerted me to a new message from Kenn. I smiled and opened it.

_ Kim, _

_ Tali’Zorah requested that I message you now that things have settled on my new ship. I’m glad that you and the others survived the mission to the Collector’s homeworld. I’m really sorry for not being there. And for not sending you something sooner! _

_ Since finishing my Pilgrimage I’ve been working with Kal’Reegar and his squad. Mostly I’m being trained in suit repair and first aid. Soon I’m going to make a request to the captain for me to get some training as a shuttle pilot as well, or at least how to make repairs on the shuttle. Don’t worry, I’m not exactly a marine, but the marine’s need people like me to keep them and their equipment at their best. _

_ Hope you’re doing well, _

_ Kenn _

“You realize he has the biggest crush on you, right? Like, Liara’s-crush-on-Shepard levels,” Jeff pointed out, giving me a look.

I waved him off. “He admires me, it’s different.”

“Pretty sure it’s more than that.”

Still typing a response, mostly commending him on stepping up but reminding him not to stretch himself too thin, I stalled in my typing to give Jeff an incredulous stare. “Why would it be more?”

Jeff rolled his eyes, but didn’t have an answer for me. With a bit of uncertainty, I closed my omni-tool and smiled at the older guy, my friend, who let out a sigh and changed the subject. “If you’re up for it, Dad was wondering if you’d want a tour of the colony tomorrow.”

I nodded in agreement. “Sounds like fun.”

“I figured you’d say that.”

“The vids have prepared me for this! Too bad they didn’t prepare me for the eerie quiet of a new place.”

With a chuckle, Jeff placed a hand on my knee and shook his head. His expression wavered between concern and amusement. “You sure you’re going to be okay sleeping alone?”

Hard to breathe, those  _ things _ seeping into my pores. Muffled noises, a dull ache--

“CP?”

The question elicited a wince from me as I shook off the memories of the more recent traumatic event, but I forced a grin. “Karin prescribed some things to hopefully keep the night terrors at bay. I’ll be fine.”

For the briefest of moments, green eyes widened, and Jeff’s face twisted into a frown. “Fuck, I’m sorry,” he cursed softly, removing his hand and glaring at the ground. “... Shit.”

“What? No, don’t be sorry,” I laughed, leaning forwards. Jeff scoffed, avoiding my gaze. “But I promise that if I have trouble sleeping, I’ll go and bug you.”

He looked over me with a gentle smile, though there was still something unreadable in his lovely green eyes. “Please do.”

Over the next couple of days, I began to get used to Tiptree. Hilary was welcoming and friendly, completely unlike her brother in that regard, and was eager to get to know me. The two of us had an interest in music, and she had shown me a few songs that she could play on her guitar. I was significantly less skilled with it, and the teenager had proudly presented her old ukulele to me. The smaller, arguably more simple instrument was significantly more in my comfort zone, though I only really knew a couple of chords and was garbage at playing; especially when compared to Hilary and her guitar.

“I just don’t understand how you’re friends with someone like  _ Jeff _ !” Hilary had exclaimed, laying on the couch by having her legs hanging over the back of the seat. The teenager’s hair was messy and wild, not tucked into the SR-1 hat that her brother had given her years prior. “You’re so nice and fun. My brother’s a bit of a dick. I mean, I get that the two of you have worked together for  _ years _ and all, but…”

I snickered, quickly glancing back through the window to confirm that Jeff was still helping Colton with some work in the yard. “Please, Hilary, continue that thought.”

“You’re just… I don’t know…” Hilary adjusted so she was sitting properly. “...You listen to me, and you’re a good singer and you’re  _ cool _ .”

The compliment warmed my heart. “Thanks, Sunshine.”

“Plus  _ your _ nickname for me is way cuter than ‘Freckles’! Like, come on, I know I have freckles! Everyone that looks at my  _ face  _ can see I have freckles! And everyone else calls me Gunny, which I actually _like_ being called. It’s not like I call Jeffie nicknames that he’d hate, like ‘Cripple’ or ‘Sir Limps-a-Lot!’” 

The ideas made me laugh. “Oh,  _ please _ try calling him Sir Limps-a-Lot. I’ll record his reaction.”

Hilary smiled, pleased that I found her ideas hilarious. “But like, what made you and my brother become friends?” She inquired, genuinely curious.

“Oh, well first I didn’t put up with his shit,” I shrugged. “Eventually we had respect for each other, and then realized that we enjoyed each other’s company.” I wasn’t going to mention the two year gap in our friendship. Or how I’d, essentially, sacrificed myself for him and also confessed my feelings. But I felt warm at the thought of just…  _ why _ I fell for him. “Jeff’s hard to deal with, sometimes. But when it comes down to it, he’s really sweet. And caring. Even though he likes to pretend that he’s not.”

“...Yeah,” the younger girl allowed a small smile to grow on her lips. “Jeffie’s all about hiding what a softie he is. I know I complain about him a lot, but I love him. He’s super cool when he isn’t picking on me.”

The Moreau family was just so damn cute. I rested my hands on either side of my face and smiled at Hilary. “It’s really great to see how well the two of you get along. Adorable, really.” Hilary’s freckled face turned bright red and she scowled. My smile shifted into a playful grin. “You really look up to him, huh?”

Still scowling and averting her gaze, Hilary nodded in response. 

“Don’t be embarrassed,” I told her gently. “He’s pretty amazing. That’s why he’s a stellar pilot, and a highly respected one to boot.”

A couple days before Jeff’s birthday, Colton took Hilary and I to the docks where most of the shops were located to pick up ingredients for the party. There were a few posters up, as some of the locals were planning on shooting off some fireworks the same day as Jeff’s birthday and were inviting people to join in and make a celebration out of it. BBQ, drinks, a real community get-together.

“Daaaaaad,” Hilary whined. “That sounds like so much more fun! Can’t we go? We could celebrate Jeffie’s birthday at lunch time and then hang out with everyone!”

“Come on, Gunny,” the older man chuckled, ruffling her hair much like I’d seen Jeff do. “Your brother doesn’t get to visit us that often. We should appreciate the time we get to spend with him. Besides, there’ll always be more fireworks. Jameson and Beck love organizing that sort of thing.”

I stared at the poster wistfully. It had been a long, long time since I’d seen fireworks. From what I remembered, I hadn’t enjoyed it. The space had been too crowded, too many people. Super loud. Not enjoyable at all, in my opinion. The only thing that I enjoyed was watching them as we broke from the crowds and headed back to the Red’s base. 

A tug on my sleeve caused me to look over at Hilary, her blue-green eyes pleading. “Kim, what do you think?”

I cracked a smile. “It’s  _ Jeff’s _ birthday, maybe he should decide what we do.”

Lighting up with realization at my words, Hilary clapped her hands together. “Please please please  _ please  _ ask Jeff for me, please? If I ask him, then it’ll seem like I don’t care about his birthday--“

“Gunny, you're not exactly saying anything that proves otherwise,” the girl’s father stated, disapproval dripping from his words. Hilary pouted and stuck her tongue out, crossing her arms and turning away from Colton with a huff. Still, it did sound interesting at least.   


Later on, Jeff and I sat on the front porch stairs, just chatting about random shit and, once again, giving me hope for something more with him (even if I kept trying to squash that hope underneath my boot). It was fine. Just being friends was fine. And if Jeff wanted more, hopefully he’d just tell me.

We sat close together, the outside air cool enough for us to comfortably wear hoodies. The planet’s seasons were different from Earth, where it was (according to Colton) fairly mild throughout the year instead of “confusing fuckery around the globe”. That conversation had led to an amusing rant on the older man's part where he word vomited a ton of stuff about how the generations prior almost made Earth unlivable with corporate bullshit and how much he preferred the colony life compared to the bullshit that came from both Alien and Human politics.  


Jeff’s little family was inside the house while the two of us bantered outside, making dinner. Well, Colton was making dinner. I could hear Hilary practicing guitar inside. “When we went into town today, there were some posters up,” I told him, the pilot raising an eyebrow questioningly. “Apparently some of the colonists are having a fireworks show. Whole colony’s invited.”

“Sounds like a  _ blast _ , CP.”

The pun, of course, made me laugh. “It’s going to be on February 8th. You know, your birthday.”

“I didn’t realize that the people of Tiptree appreciated me so much,” Jeff joked, puffing out his chest slightly. “I can’t blame them though.”

“Ha ha,” I responded dryly to his faux overconfidence. Thinking about Hilary's pleading eyes and how, well, there was no real harm in asking, I cracked a small smile. “... Can we go?”

“Sure, sounds fun.”

A loud “YES!” and the sound of something (probably Hilary) toppling against the door behind us made me realize that I hadn’t heard the guitar for a few minutes. Wearing a shit-eating grin, Jeff stood up and swung the front door open, Hilary falling forwards looking like a deer in headlights. Seeing the teen clamber to recover, the pilot just grinned. I, instead, laughed.


End file.
